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Comment by echelon | Hacker News Reader

Maybe a required 20px white on black label affixed to the top of the app at all times. Like a cookie banner, but not dismissible?

  THIS PRODUCT IS DESIGNED TO MANIPULATE YOUR EMOTIONAL STATE. [READ MORE]

That seems totally reasonable to me.

We should call our legislators and demand this. This would make society so much better if Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Reddit, etc. were forced to bear this marking.

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Has there ever been a product that isn't designed to manipulate your emotional state?

My couch doesn't manipulate my emotional state

Caresses the supple leather underneath me

Not that I don't support warning disclaimers on facebook, but "designed to manipulate your emotional state" certainly applies to all movies, music, most books, etc. A big difference between these things and facebook is that facebook is reactive. It constantly measures your emotional state and modifies what it presents you with. Movies, music and books don't do that (yet?)

Facebook reacts to you reacting to facebook; putting you inside a control loop. Facebook is more akin to a car salesman than a movie director; a car salesman who knows virtually everything about you because he's MITMed your social interactions for years, and can modify his individualized approach to manipulating you minute by minute.

This is a truly brilliant idea!

Sounds good. I also propose that companies can opt out, at the cost of donating 20% of their annual revenue, every year, to agricultural development or to the military. These are prosocial organizations known for their contribution to society.

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